Love at First Fight

Arnaud is twenty and drifting through a summer in a small French coastal town, helping his brother run the family business after their father's death. Then he meets Madeleine, a young woman of the same age who is convinced the world is about to end and spends her time training for it, swimming, fighting and pushing herself physically. Their first encounter, a sparring match at a beachside army recruitment stand, ends with her knocking him down and him biting her. He falls for her anyway, and when she signs up for an army boot camp to learn survival skills, he follows, hoping to stay close to her. The training proves harder than either expected, and their relationship takes shape under the strain.

Thomas Cailley directed and co-wrote the film with Claude Le Pape; it was his first feature, and he went on to make The Animal Kingdom in 2023. Adèle Haenel and Kévin Azaïs play Madeleine and Arnaud, with Antoine Laurent, Brigitte Roüan, William Lebghil and Thibaut Berducat in supporting roles, from a credited cast of 44.

Made in France, the film runs 98 minutes and blends comedy with romance. On IMDb it holds 6.6 out of 10 from around 6,500 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 6.5 from roughly 458 votes, showing a similarly moderate audience response across both.